Portable toilet

ABSTRACT

A portable assembly for housing a toilet having an enclosure having a doorframe cutout having a first perimeter portion formed around the doorframe cutout, the first perimeter portion comprises a knife edge extending out from an outer side of the front sidewall. The portable assembly further includes a door having a second perimeter being sized and shaped to substantially correspond to a shape and a size of the doorframe cutout, a gasket fit inside of a cavity in the door, wherein the gasket comprises a divot sized and shaped to correspond a shape and a size of the knife edge to accommodate the knife edge when the door is configured in the closed position, and a lock assembly configured to engage a wedge to provide a knife-edge seal via the gasket and knife edge.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 16/399,475 filed onApr. 30, 2019, which claims the benefit of and priority to U.S.Provisional Patent Application No. 62/664,610 filed on Apr. 30, 2018,both of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

In the offshore oil & gas industry, portable toilets are oftentimestransported on and off of the drilling platform using a crane. Theportable toilets can then be positioned on the deck of the drillingplatform using a forklift. To facilitate this type of transport, thetraditional plastic portable toilets have to be placed into a temporary“cage” to allow for the transport via a crane and cables.

In practice, the traditional plastic portable toilets—even when placedinto a temporary cage—present several drawbacks. By the very nature oftransportation via a crane, the portable toilet oftentimes sways duringthe loading and unloading process. Traditional portable toiletsconstructed of plastic feature flimsy doors which cannot maintainwater-tight seal. Thus, during the loading and unloading process, sewageand other chemicals can escape the primary waste reservoir and leak outof the enclosure's plastic door, thus presenting an environmentalhazard. Additionally, traditional plastic portable toilets are prone tobeing punctured by the forks of the forklift during transportation onthe deck of the drilling platform, thus damaging the portable toilet.

The disclosure addresses these drawbacks of traditional plastic portabletoilets.

SUMMARY

The disclosure disclosed herein is directed to a portable assembly forhousing a toilet, which may be used in the offshore oil & gas industryand in other industries. The portable assembly may include an enclosureincluding a right sidewall, a left sidewall, a front sidewall, a rearsidewall, and a top sidewall, the front sidewall having a doorframecutout having a first perimeter portion formed around the doorframecutout, wherein the first perimeter portion includes a knife edgeextending out from an outer side of the front sidewall. The portableassembly may include a base assembly, wherein the base assembly iscoupled to the right sidewall, a left sidewall, a front sidewall, and arear sidewall. The portable assembly may include a door having a secondperimeter being sized and shaped to substantially correspond to a shapeand a size of the doorframe cutout, the door having an inner side and anouter side, the second perimeter having a cavity formed in the secondperimeter, wherein an opening of the cavity faces out from the innerside of the door, the inner side of the door being configured tosubstantially cover the doorframe cutout when the door is configured ina closed position. The portable assembly may include a gasket sized andshaped to substantially correspond to the shape and size of the cavityallowing the gasket to fit flush inside of the cavity, wherein thegasket includes a divot sized and shaped to correspond a shape and asize of the knife edge to accommodate the knife edge when the door isconfigured in the closed position. The portable assembly may include awedge having a first side attached to an inner side of the front wall,the wedge extending out from the inner side of the front wall. Theportable assembly may include a lock assembly attached to the door, thelock assembly including: a bolt extending through the door, wherein afirst portion of the bolt extends from the outer side of the door and asecond portion of the bolt extends from the inner side of the door, thebolt being rotatable about an axis; a first lever attached to the firstportion of the bolt and configured to rotate about the axis; and asecond lever attached to the second portion of the bolt, the secondlever having a first surface configured to rotate about the axis toengage a sloped second side of the wedge for configuring the door in theclosed position and in an opened position, wherein the second leverengages a thicker portion of the wedge in the closed position, whereinthe engagement of the first surface of the second lever and the slopedsecond side of the wedge provides a knife-edge seal via the gasket andknife edge.

In one or more embodiments, the portable assembly may further include ahinge coupling an edge of the door to the front side of the enclosure,wherein the door is configured to swing about the hinge.

In one or more embodiments, a narrow portion of the wedge is orientedspatially closer to the base assembly than the thicker portion of thewedge.

In one or more embodiments, the thicker portion of the wedge is orientedspatially closer to the base assembly than a narrow portion of thewedge.

In one or more embodiments, responsive to transitioning from the openposition to the closed position, the first surface of the second leverinitially engages with a narrow portion of the wedge and slides alongthe sloped second side of the wedge to the thicker portion of the wedge.

In one or more embodiments, the second lever is a bilateral lever havinga first arm extending in a first lateral direction from the bolt and asecond arm extending in a second lateral direction from the bolt.

In one or more embodiments, the second lateral direction issubstantially opposite to the first lateral direction.

In one or more embodiments, the portable assembly further includes thetoilet disposed on a top side of the base assembly and within theenclosure.

In one or more embodiments, the gasket is rubber.

In one or more embodiments, the wedge is integrally formed with thefront side of the enclosure.

In one or more embodiments, the gasket extends around an entire lengthof the cavity.

In one or more embodiments, the portable assembly further includes oneor more hooking devices attached to the enclosure.

In one or more embodiments, the one or more hooking devices is attachedto the top side wall.

In one or more embodiments, each of the hooking devices includes padeyes.

In one or more embodiments, the one or more hooking devices includesfour hooking devices located at top corners of the enclosure.

In one or more embodiments, the base assembly is integrally formed withthe enclosure.

In one or more embodiments, the base assembly forms a floor of theenclosure.

In one or more embodiments, the base assembly extends beyond a length ofenclosure.

In one or more embodiments, the base assembly includes one or morepocket channels, each pocket channel having at least one open end.

In one or more embodiments, each pocket channel includes two open ends.

In one or more embodiments, each pocket channel includes an openingextending an entire length of the corresponding pocket channel betweenthe two open ends.

In one or more embodiments, the base assembly includes two pocketchannels.

In one or more embodiments, an outer edge of a first of the two pocketchannels is substantially aligned with an outer edge of the rightsidewall, and an outer edge of a second of the two pocket channels issubstantially aligned with an outer edge of the right sidewall.

In one or more embodiments, an outer edge of a first of the two pocketchannels is substantially aligned with an outer edge of the frontsidewall, and an outer edge of a second of the two pocket channels issubstantially aligned with an outer edge of the rear sidewall.

In one or more embodiments, junctions between adjacent sidewalls of theenclosure form substantially 90 degree angles.

In one or more embodiments, the knife-edge seal is a water-tight seal.

In one or more embodiments, an angle formed between the first side ofthe wedge and the sloped second side of the wedge is between about 5 to15 degrees.

The disclosure also relates to a method for transporting the portableassembly describe above, where the method includes transporting theportable assembly from a first location to a second location.

In one or more embodiments, the method further includes transporting theportable assembly when the door is configured in the closed position.

In one or more embodiments, the portable assembly further includes thetoilet disposed on a top side of the base assembly and within theenclosure, and the method further includes transporting the portableassembly and the toilet from the first location to a second location.

In one or more embodiments, the portable assembly further includes oneor more hooking devices attached to the enclosure, and the methodfurther includes transporting the portable assembly via the one or morehooking devices.

In one or more embodiments, the portable assembly is transported via acrane.

In one or more embodiments, transporting includes transporting theportable assembly to a drilling platform.

In one or more embodiments, transporting includes transporting theportable assembly from a first location on a drilling platform to asecond location on the drilling platform.

In one or more embodiments, transporting includes transporting theportable assembly from a drilling platform.

In one or more embodiments, the base assembly includes one or morepocket channels, each pocket channel having at least one open end, andthe method further includes transporting the portable assembly via theone or more pocket channels.

In one or more embodiments, the portable assembly is transported via aforklift.

The above summary is not intended to describe each illustratedembodiment or every possible implementation. These and other features,aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become betterunderstood with regard to the following description, appended claims,and accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the portable assembly.

FIG. 2 is a top cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the portableassembly.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the portable assembly.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the portableassembly.

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of the portableassembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DISCLOSURE

With reference to the figures where like elements have been given likenumerical designation to facilitate an understanding of the presentdisclosure, and particularly with reference to the embodiment of theportable assembly for housing a toilet illustrated in FIGS. 1-5 , theportable assembly 2 may be constructed for transport, such as via aforklift, a crane, and the like. The portable assembly 2 may include anenclosure 4, a base assembly 26, door 34, and one or more hookingdevices 86.

The enclosure 4 may be coupled to (e.g., fixedly attached, mounted,etc.) to a base assembly 26. The enclosure 4 and base assembly 26 arepreferably constructed out of a metal, such as aluminum, steel, and thelike. The enclosure 4 may comprise a right sidewall 6, a left sidewall8, a front sidewall 10, a rear sidewall 14, and a top sidewall 16, whichmay be a ceiling, any of which may be welded together for example. Insome embodiments, the right sidewall 6 and left sidewall 8 may measureabout 40-50 inches in length (e.g., 45 inches). In some embodiments, thefront sidewall 10 and the rear sidewall 14 may measure about 45-55inches in length (e.g., 47 inches). The sidewalls 6, 8, 10, 14, and 16may be about ¼ to 1 inch thick (e.g., 3/16 inches). An angle formedbetween adjacent sidewalls 6, 8, 10, 14, and 16 may be about 90 degrees.The enclosure 4 may include a doorframe 18 forming a perimeter portionaround a doorframe cutout 20. As shown in FIGS. 2, 4, and 5 , thedoorframe cutout 20 may include a knife edge flange 22 (typicallyreferred to below as simply “knife edge”), which may extend out awayfrom the outer side 12 of the front side wall 10. The knife edge 22 maybe about ⅜ inches in length.

In some embodiments, enclosure 4 may further comprise a floor attachedto the right, left, front, and rear sidewalls 6, 8, 10, 14. In someembodiments, the base assembly 26 may be the floor of the enclosure 4. Atoilet may be disposed on a top side of the base assembly 26 (floor) andwithin the enclosure 4. The floor may be about ¼ to 1 inch thick (e.g.,3/16 inches). The enclosure 4 can be attached to the base assembly 26via welding, bolts, or any other means known in the art. In someembodiments, base assembly 26 may be integrally formed with theenclosure 4, such as during the manufacturing of the portable assembly2. In some embodiments, base assembly 26 may fit flush with the bottomedge of sidewalls 6, 8, 10, 14 of the enclosure 4, forming a rectangularor square shape or cross section. In some embodiments, the base assembly26 may extend beyond the length of the enclosure 4, such as to form astep and/or platform in front of one of the sidewalls 6, 8, 10, 14 ofthe enclosure 4. For example, a platform may be formed in front of thedoor 34.

Base assembly 26 may include one or more pocket channels 28, which eachmay have one or more open ends 30. For example, base assembly 26 mayinclude two pocket channels 28 formed at opposite ends of the baseassembly 26, such as on the underside of enclosure 4. The pocketchannels 28 may measure about 4 to 8 inches in height (e.g., 6 inches)and may be about 8 to 16 inches in width (e.g., 12 inches). Portableassembly 2 may be lifted and/or transported via the one or more pocketchannels 28. For example, a person or machine, such as a forklift, maylift the portable assembly 2 may inserting a lifting member into theopen end 30 and lifting the portable assembly 2. In this arrangement,the portable assembly 2 can be transported via a forklift without therisk of the enclosure 4 being damaged. In some embodiments, pocketchannel 28 may include an opening extending through the entire length ofthe pocket channel 28 between two open ends 30. In some embodiments, anouter edge 32 of one pocket channel 28 may be aligned with an outer edgeof right side wall 6, and an outer edge 32 of a second pocket channel 28may be aligned with an outer edge of left sidewall 8. In someembodiments, an outer edge 32 of one pocket channel 28 may be alignedwith an outer edge of front side wall 10, and an outer edge 32 of asecond pocket channel 28 may be aligned with an outer edge of rearsidewall 14.

The enclosure 4 of the portable assembly 2 may include or more hookingdevices 86 (e.g., hoops, hooks, etc.) mounted to the portable assembly2, such as to one or more of the sidewalls 6, 8, 10, 14, 16 of theenclosure 4 (e.g., to the ceiling, top sidewall 16, or to a junction oftwo or three sidewalls 6, 8, 10, 14, 16). Hooking devices 86 may allowthe portable assembly 2 to be transported via a wire and/or crane (orother device), without the need to use a separate cage as is used inconventional systems. In some embodiments, a hooking device 86 mayextend up from the enclosure of the enclosure 4. In some embodiments,the one or more hooking devices 86 may attach to a sidewall (rightsidewall 6, a left sidewall 8, a front sidewall 10, and a rear sidewall14) in addition to or instead of attaching to the top side wall 16. Insome embodiments, a hooking device 86 may include or be a pad eye 88and/or an extension portion attached to a loop. In one embodiment, theportable assembly 2 may include four (4) pad eyes 88 mounted at the topcorners of the portable assembly 2, such as shown in the figures.

The enclosure 4 may include a wedge 48 having a first side 50 attachedto the front wall 10, such as at about a midway length point near alonger side of the front wall 10. The handle 24 may be located near thewedge on the opposite side of the front sidewall 10. The wedge 48 mayextend out from the inner side 11 of the front sidewall 10. The wedge 48may include second side 52, third side 54, and fourth sides 56. Thewedge 48 may include a narrow portion 60 and a thicker portion 62, whichmay have a greater width than the narrow portion 60. The thicker portion62 may be on the end closer to the third side 54. The second side 52 maybe sloped from the narrow portion 60 to the thicker portion 62. In someembodiments, the narrow portion 60 may be located and/or orientedspatially closer to the base assembly 26 than the thicker portion 62. Insome embodiments, the thicker portion 62 may be located and/or orientedspatially closer to the base assembly 26 than the narrow portion 60. Insome embodiments, an angle formed between the first side 50 of the wedge48 and the sloped second side 52 of the wedge 48 may be between about 5to 15 degrees (e.g., 10 degrees). In some embodiments, the wedge 48 maybe integrally formed with the enclosure 4.

The enclosure 4 may include a marine-style watertight door 34 formed inand/or attached to the front sidewall 10 of the enclosure 4. Forexample, an edge of the door 34 may attach to the front wall 10 of theenclosure 4 via one or more hinges 84, which may allow the door 34 toswing about the one or more hinges 84. The door 34 may measure about 66to 80 inches in height (e.g., 71 inches). As shown, the height of alower hinge 84 may be about 18 inches from the bottom of the door 34,and the height of the upper hinge 84 may be about 36 inches from thebottom of the door 34. The door 34 may be about ¼ to 1 inch thick (e.g.,3/16 inches). The door 34 may include an inner side 37 and an outer side38. The door 34 may include a perimeter portion 36 being sized and shapeto substantially correspond to the size and shape of the perimeter ofthe doorframe 18/cutout 20. For example, the inner side 37 may beconfigured to cover the doorframe cutout 20 when the door 34 isconfigured in a closed position. The watertight door 34 may include acavity 40 formed in the perimeter 36, where the cavity 40 may be anysuitable shape. For example, the cavity 40 may be U-shaped and may beabout 1 inch deep. The cavity 40 may include an opening 42 that may faceout from the inner side 37 of the door.

The cavity 40 may include a gasket 44 disclosed inside of the cavity 40.The gasket 44 may correspond to the shape and/or size of the cavity 40to allow the gasket to fit flush inside of the cavity 40. In someembodiments, the gasket 44 may extend around the entire door 34 aroundthe perimeter portion 36 within the cavity 40, such as to facilitate aknife-edge seal system when the door 34 is in a closed position. Thegasket 44 may be rubber. In some embodiments, the gasket 44 may be othermaterial (e.g., plastic, polymer, etc.).

The door 34 can be selectively locked in the closed position by lockingassemblies 64, which may include one or more dog lock fittings. Thelocking assembly 64 may be located at about the midway point along thefront sidewall 10 closer to a longer edge of the front sidewall 10, suchas near the handle 24. The locking assembly 64 (e.g., dog lock fitting)may include a bolt 66 extending through the door 34, where a firstportion 70 of the bolt 66 may extend from the outer side 38 of the door34 and a second portion 72 of the bolt 66 may extend from the inner side37 of the door 34. The bolt 66 and (associated/attached components) maybe rotatable about an axis 68 extending longitudinally through the bolt66. In some embodiments, the rotation may be through an angle up to 360degrees.

A first lever 74 may attach to the first portion 70 of the bolt 66. Thelocking assembly 64 may include a second lever 78 attached to the secondportion 72 of the bolt 66. The second lever 78 may have a surface 76that engages a sloped second side 52 of wedge 48 to tightly secure thedoor 34 to the doorframe 18 via the gasket 44 and knife edge 22 when thedoor is in closed and open positions. For example, responsive totransitioning from an open position to a closed position, the firstsurface 76 of the second lever 78 may initially engage with narrowportion 60 of the wedge 48 and slide along the sloped second side 52 ofthe wedge 48 to the thicker portion 62 of the wedge 48. The engagementof the first surface 76 of the second lever 78 and the sloped secondside 52 of the wedge 48 provides a knife-edge seal via the gasket 44 andknife edge 22, which may transition the door 34 from an unlockedconfiguration to a locked configuration. For example, the gasket 44 mayinclude a divot 46 sized and shaped to correspond a shape and a size ofthe knife edge 22 to accommodate the knife edge 22 when the door 34 isconfigured in the closed position. The dog (second lever 78) bears uptight on the wedge 48, causing the gasket 44 around the edge of the door34 to press against the knife edge 22 around the doorframe 18 forming awatertight seal, such as when the one or more dogs are properly seated(i.e., dogged down). In some embodiments, the first surface 76 mayinclude a projection (e.g., rubber, plastic, and the like) that maystick out and engage the wedge.

To transition from a closed position to an open position, the firstsurface 76 of the second lever 78 may slide down the sloped second side52 of the wedge 48 from the thicker portion 62 to the narrow portion 60,which may transition the door 34 from a locked configuration to anunlocked configuration. In some embodiments, the first lever 74 and/orthe second lever 78 may be unilateral levers having one arm, such as howthe first lever 74 is shown in FIGS. 2 and 5 . In some embodiments, thefirst lever 74 and/or the second lever 78 may be bilateral levers havinga first arm 80 extending in a first lateral direction from the bolt 66and a second arm 82 extending in a second lateral direction from thebolt 66, such as how the second lever 78 is shown in FIGS. 2 and 5 . Thesecond lateral direction may be opposite the first lateral direction.The levers 74, 78 may include more than two arms in some cases.

According to features described herein, dimensions are approximate andmay be scaled to size based on desired sizing and scaling.

The term “about” as used herein will typically mean a numerical valuewhich is approximate and whose small variation would not significantlyaffect the practice of the disclosed embodiments. Where a numericallimitation is used, unless indicated otherwise by the context, “about”means the numerical value can vary by +/−20%. Similarly, the term“substantially” will typically mean at least 85% of the characteristicmodified by the term. For example, “substantially all” will mean atleast 85%.

While preferred embodiments of the disclosure have been described, it isto be understood that the embodiments described are illustrative onlyand that the scope of the disclosure is to be defined solely by theappended claims when accorded a full range of equivalence, manyvariations and modifications naturally occurring to those skilled in theart from a perusal hereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A portable assembly for housing a toilet,comprising: an enclosure comprising a right sidewall, a left sidewall, afront sidewall, a rear sidewall, and a top sidewall, the front sidewallhaving a doorframe cutout having a first perimeter portion formed aroundthe doorframe cutout, wherein the first perimeter portion comprises aknife edge flange extending out from an outer side of the frontsidewall; a base assembly, wherein the base assembly is positioned belowthe enclosure to provide a floor for the enclosure; a door having asecond perimeter being sized and shaped to substantially cover an areaof the doorframe cutout, the door having an inner side and an outerside, the second perimeter having a cavity formed in the secondperimeter, wherein an opening of the cavity faces out from the innerside of the door, the inner side of the door being configured tosubstantially cover the doorframe cutout when the door is configured ina closed position; a gasket sized and shaped to fit flush inside of thecavity, wherein the gasket comprises a divot sized and shaped tocorrespond to a shape and a size of the knife edge flange to accommodatethe knife edge flange when the door is configured in the closedposition; a wedge positioned on an inner side of the front sidewall, thewedge extending out from the inner side of the front sidewall; and alock assembly attached to the door.
 2. The portable assembly of claim 1,further comprising a toilet disposed on a top side of the base assemblyand within the enclosure.
 3. The portable assembly of claim 1, furthercomprising one or more hooking devices attached to the enclosure.
 4. Theportable assembly of claim 3, wherein the one or more hooking devices isattached to the top sidewall.
 5. The portable assembly of claim 3,wherein each of the hooking devices comprises pad eyes.
 6. The portableassembly of claim 3, wherein the one or more hooking devices comprisesfour hooking devices located at top corners of the enclosure.
 7. Theportable assembly of claim 1, wherein the base assembly is integrallyformed with the enclosure.
 8. The portable assembly of claim 1, whereinthe base assembly comprises one or more pocket channels, each pocketchannel having at least one open end.
 9. The portable assembly of claim1, wherein the base assembly is coupled to the enclosure.
 10. A portableassembly for housing a toilet, comprising: an enclosure including afront sidewall having a doorframe with a cutout; a door sized and shapedto cover the cutout of the doorframe, the door having an inner side andan outer side; a seal assembly positioned between the doorframe and theinner side of the door, the seal assembly including (i) a knife edgeflange extending from a first perimeter of the doorframe (ii) a cavityformed in the inner side of the door, the cavity corresponding in shapeto the first perimeter, and (iii) a gasket sized and shaped to fit flushinside of the cavity, wherein the gasket comprises a divot sized andshaped to correspond to a shape and a size of the knife edge flange toaccommodate the knife edge flange when the door is configured in aclosed position; a wedge positioned on an inner side of the frontsidewall, the wedge extending out from the inner side of the frontsidewall; and a lock assembly attached to the portable assembly capableof securing the door in the closed position.